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Where do I start with this one? Dynamite Entertainment has taken two of my favorite current characters, the She Devil with a sword, Red Sonja, and the vampire turned vampire hunter, Vampirella, and paired them with two of the cute characters from when I was growing up, Betty and Veronica of the Archies.
Yes, it’ll sound nerdy (and possibly a bit creepy, though it shouldn’t) to say that I’ve been waiting three months for this book to come out. I give myself a lot of credit for picking it up on Wednesday and actually waiting until Friday to read it.
Trouble is afoot in Riverdale, home to Betty, Veronica, Archie and the rest of the gang. Though as Betty says of Archie, “This is our story, not his.” So don’t plan on seeing much more of Archie in this series.
The new chemistry teacher at Riverdale High is soon the dead chemistry teacher from Riverdale High and it doesn’t take Vampirella to notice that his blood has been drained and he has a mark on his neck that is consistent with the Cult of Chaos.
High school reporters Betty and Veronica team up with Sonja and Vampirella to figure out who is behind this at the school and put a stop to it. Though as the wealthy Veronica points out, the clothes the two out of towners are wearing are more suited for LA than Riverdale.
So, after a stop at the Lodge mansion Vampirella and Sonja soon find clothes to wear although they are warned to not take any Prada or Chanel. A reasonable request in my mind.
The two ladies are enrolled as foreign exchange students from Europe where, “everyone looks older” and the sleuthing begins.
Sonja, unable to contain her fighting instincts, ends up joining football practice and destroys the players on the practice field and the opponents at the next game.
As this is going on, Betty, Veronica and Vampirella continue to hunt for someone who looks sinister and who could have murdered the teacher.
It doesn’t take long for victim number two to show up, as the football coach is found laying dead in a bloody pentagram immediately after the football game. That solidifies the Cult of Chaos to Vampirella and, unfortunately we have to wait another month to find out what happens next because the three worst words in a comic book appeared on the last page.
“TO BE CONTINUED”
For a first issue of something as wholly odd a concept as this book is, it was well written and makes me glad I signed up at my local comic shop for the series, so I never miss an issue. Get to your local shop today (or tomorrow if you’re reading this at night) and grab your copy from Dynamite Entertainment.
For the creativity of putting these four characters together and for the high-quality writing that makes this a great story so far I’m awarding Red Sonja & Vampirella Meet Betty & Veronica five purple goatees out of five.
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Photos courtesy Dynamite Comics.